Natural Resources Management and Policy Commons^™

New Guidance To Build Resiliency And Mitigate For Sea Level Rise As Elements Of The Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act, Pamela Mason, Julie Herman, Christine Tombleson, Jessica Hendricks, Karen Duhring

Reports

The Center for Coastal Resources Management (CCRM), Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS), worked in collaboration with the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and the Virginia Coastal Policy Center (VCPC) to develop guidance to inform the implementation of Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act (CBPA) regulations promulgated in 2021. The 2021 regulations added provisions to require local governments to consider climate changes, specifically flooding, sea level rise and storms, and the preservation of mature trees in the administration of the CBPA program. Specifically, CCRM developed analytical data using criteria specified in the CBPA regulations, of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration …

Shoreline Management Handbook, Pamela Mason, Angela King, Clay Bernick

Reports

Shoreline habitats and processes are impacted by the decisions we make about managing coastal development and shorelines. Shoreline Management is making choices to address the desire to protect upland property from erosion or develop property balanced with the benefits and uses of natural and nature-based shoreline features and shoreline habitat restoration. This requires a weighing of the private benefits and cots of management actions and the benefits and costs to public held common resources, also known as the public trust. The natural features along our shorelines -tidal wetlands, beaches and dunes, and riparian buffers, are economically and ecologically valuable. They …

Refining Program Capacity To Enhance And Protect Wetland Resources In Virginia: 2020 Final Report To Epa (#Bg983925-06-0), Virginia Institute Of Marine Science, Virginia Department Of Environmental Quality

Reports

Virginia continues to make significant progress in the development of a comprehensive wetland regulatory program and continued refinement of our wetland monitoring and assessment tools for use in management decision-making and integration within our water quality programs. This project focused on development of strategies to integrate management of wetlands across the landscape and among different jurisdictions sharing the same waterways. This project will increase the potential for protection and restoration of wetlands, but also include the added value of potentially improving impaired waters in Virginia. Project activities specifically addressed all of the priority elements in Virginia’s approved Wetlands Program Plan …

Expanding The Use Of Natural And Nature-Based Infrastructure To Enhance Coastal Resiliency: Forecast And Hind-Cast Load Reductions From Living Shoreline Bmps : Project Report (Year 2 Of 3), Marcia Berman, Pamela Mason, Tamia Rudnicky

Reports

The vulnerability of coastal communities and the growing risks to coastal infrastructure continue largely due to past and ongoing patterns of development in high risk areas. This project is focused on increasing the use of natural and nature-based features (NNBFs) to increase resilience of coastal communities to flooding caused by extreme weather events. This project has proposed two efforts to increase understanding of NNBFS; 1) describe the current status, and 2) quantify role of NNBF creation/ restoration for water quality benefits in support of coastal resilience. The products of the 3-year project are intended to support informed coastal management decision-making …

Building Capacity For Protection Of Wetland Resources In Virginia - Track One, Virginia Department Of Environmental Quality, Center For Coastal Resources Management - Virginia Institute Of Marine Science

Reports

DEQ continues to make significant progress in the development of a comprehensive nontidal wetland regulatory program; refinement of our permitting/compliance database to track impacts, compliance, and compensation by watershed; and continued refinement of our wetland monitoring and assessment tools for use in management decision-making and integration within our water quality programs. This project focused on development of strategies and extension of outreach to improve understanding and protection of high ecological value aquatic resources such as headwater resources and wetlands that may provide added value in improving impaired waters in Virginia. Project activities specifically addressed three of the priority elements in …

Johns Point Landing Living Shoreline – Ecological Monitoring : Final Report To Gloucester County, Donna Marie Bilkovic, Molly Mitchell, Robert Isdell

Reports

VIMS monitoring activities consisted of three components:

• Monitoring of marsh vegetation establishment after planting

• Documenting ribbed mussel and oyster recruitment and growth in experimental bags of oyster shell at the living shoreline

• Monitoring infaunal communities prior to and after living shoreline implementation

Development Of A Coastal Resources Certificate Program For Marine Contractors & Consultants, Karen Duhring, Julie Bradshaw

Reports

The Center for Coastal Resources Management at VIMS has been engaged with continuing education and training for a mixed audience over the past 35 years. Marine contractors and consultants play an important role in the evolving field of tidal shoreline management. This Creative Adaptation Fund project investigated the unique training needs of this private sector audience and attempted to define the best format and delivery for a Coastal Resources Certificate Program. It was determined that training needs for shoreline professionals can be met with a multi‐day short course that includes both classroom and field settings. This private sector audience expressed …

A Collaborative Summit, Protecting Water Quality Through Actions On Urban-Suburban Properties, February 13-14, 2013, Williamsburg, Va, Wetlands Watch, Alliance For The Chesapeake Bay, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science, University Of Virginia's Institute For Environmental Negotiation

Reports

The clock is ticking for local governments. Beginning in 2014, many local governments must plan, finance, and implement stormwater management/ pollutant reduction action plans that achieve a significant decrease in polluted stormwater runoff within the next 10 to 15 years. These plans are required to meet regulatory commitments associated with Virginia Stormwater Management Program and Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4) stormwater permits, Virgina’s Watershed Implementation Plan (WIP), and the Chesapeake Bay Total Maximum Daily Load (Bay TMDL) allocations.

To achieve our water quality goals, we will need to take a coordinated, structured, and collaborative approach - coordinating across sectors …

Estuarine Blue Infrastructure: Final Priority Conservation Areas For Chesapeake Bay And Its Tidal Tributaries And Back Bay – Version 2.0 (Revised 09/2010), Center For Coastal Resources Management, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science

Reports

This project is an extension of earlier efforts within the coastal zone of Virginia to build a platform for enhanced Blue and Green Infrastructure planning. This project is motivated by an interest in extending statewide conservation efforts into estuarine systems and recognition that land use decisions on the upland effect water quality and habitat health in the receiving waters. The project in its entirety has been accomplished in distinct parts. Part one develops a Cumulative Resource Assessment to evaluate the distribution of aquatic natural resources within waters of Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay waters, Back Bay of Virginia Beach, Virginia, and the …

Estuarine Blue Infrastructure: Priority Conservation Areas For The Seaside Of Virginia’S Eastern Shore, Center For Coastal Resources Management, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science

Reports

This project is an extension of earlier efforts within the coastal zone of Virginia to build a platform for enhanced Blue and Green Infrastructure planning. This project is motivated by an interest in extending statewide conservation efforts into estuarine systems and recognition that land use decisions on the upland effect water quality and habitat health in the receiving waters. The project in its entirety has been accomplished in distinct parts. Part one develops a Cumulative Resource Assessment to evaluate the distribution of aquatic natural resources within waters of Virginia’s Chesapeake Bay waters, Back Bay of Virginia Beach, Virginia, and the …

City Of Chesapeake, Virginia Shoreline Inventory Report Methods And Guidelines, Marcia Berman, Harry Berquist, Sharon Killeen, Carl Hershner, Karinna Nunez, Karen Reay, Tamia Rudnicky, Daniel Schatt, Dave Weiss

Reports

This shoreline inventory is developed as a tool for assessing conditions along the tidal shoreline in the City of Chesapeake. Field data were collected between June and July 2002. Conditions are reported for three zones within the immediate riparian river area: riparian land use, bank and buffers, and the shoreline. A series of maps and tabular data are published to illustrate and quantify results of an extensive shoreline survey. Shorelines of the western, southern and eastern branches of the Elizabeth River including small tributaries were surveyed for this inventory. Small sections were coded using remote sensing techniques because the shoreline …

Gloucester County, Virginia Shoreline Inventory Report Methods And Guidelines, Marcia Berman, Harry Berquist, Sharon Killeen, Carl Hershner, Karinna Nunez, Karen Reay, Tamia Rudnicky, Daniel Schatt, Dave Weiss

Reports

This shoreline inventory is developed as a tool for assessing conditions along the tidal shoreline in the Gloucester County. Field data were collected between August and November 1998. Conditions are reported for three zones within the immediate riparian river area: riparian land use, bank and buffers, and the shoreline. A series of maps and tabular data are published to illustrate and quantify results of an extensive shoreline survey. Shorelines of the Poropotank, York, Severn, Ware, North and Piankatank rivers as well as creeks and small tributaries were surveyed for this inventory. Sections were coded using remote sensing techniques because the …

The Stability Of Living Shorelines - An Evaluation, Center For Coastal Resources Management, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science, Marcia Berman, Harry Berquist, Julie Herman, Karinna Nunez

Reports

This project set out to strengthen arguments that living shorelines were a viable and preferred method of erosion control along much of the Chesapeake Bay shoreline. Using statistical tests and data that describe shoreline and environmental condition along tidal shoreline, the study found that indeed marshes are frequently associated with stable shoreline and therefore recommending living shoreline treatments to manage erosion problems was a reasonable strategy that warranted strong consideration. Additional tests revealed a lower occurrence of marshes when traditional erosion control structures like bulkheads and revetments were present. This confirms these structures can permanently impact the growth of tidal …

Derelict Blue Crab Trap Impacts On Marine Fisheries In The Lower York River, Virginia, Kirk J. Havens, Donna Marie Bilkovic, David Stanhope, Kory Angstadt, Carl Hershner, Center For Coastal Resources Management, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science

Reports

In Virginia, an examination of existing derelict trap data retrieved from Chesapeake Bay Multispecies Monitoring and Assessment Program (ChesMMAP) trawl surveys shows the potential effect of derelict traps on fish communities in Virginia waters (Bonzek and Latour 2005). Since 2002, ChesMMAP has attempted to sample 90 stations in the mainstem Chesapeake Bay ranging from the southern edge of the Susquehanna Flats to the Bay mouth in all depths to a minimum of 10 feet during each cruise. There are approximately 4-5 cruises per year and a large mesh bottom trawl is used to capture adult fish of a variety of …

Interagency Shoreline Management Consensus Document, Center For Coastal Resources Management, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science

Reports

There are concerns in the general public and regulatory and environmental advisory agencies regarding the apparent inconsistent and /or contradictory guidance offered to property owners regarding shoreline management in Virginia. There has been a growing interest among the agencies that manage, or otherwise have a role in shoreline management, to develop a Virginia perspective on the issue. This project to develop a consensus position from a VIMS perspective, with funding from the Virginia Coastal Program, may serve as the initiation of an effort to develop consensus guidance on shoreline management that integrates the issues and concerns extant in the various …

Integrated Coastal Management & Sustainable Aquaculture Development In The Adriatic Sea, Republic Of Croatia, Anamarija Frankic

Reports

This report discusses development of responsible aquaculture in the Republic of Croatia as part of the integrated coastal zone management and sustainable development of marine, coastal and islands natural and human resources. Based on literature review examples of aquaculture development and its constraints are presented, as well as possible solutions and recommendations. In addition, one attachment document provides brief summary information regarding Mediterranean lessons in aquaculture practices, while second document provides draft guidelines for sustainable aquaculture development in Croatia. Report is a contribution to the project ‘The Integrated Coastal Zone Management for Croatia with special focus on aquaculture’, administered by …

Initiating The Development Of A Forested Depressional Wetland Hgm Model For The Coastal Plain Of Virginia., Kirk J. Havens, David O'Brien, David Stanhope, Rebecca Thomas, Gene Silberhorn

Reports

This report encompasses the initial development of a WDW model up to the preliminary development stage and serves as an initial framework for a WDW model for the coastal plain of Virginia. These results can serve as a foundation for subsequent studies to complete the development of the model.

Enhancement Of Wetlands Management In Virginia: Cumulative Impact Assessment Final Report, Center For Coastal Resources Management

Reports

New protocols and procedures are needed to effectively implement many aspects of the new Virginia nontidal wetlands regulatory program. Effective implementation of the charge to assess and consider cumulative impacts of a proposed project on water quality and fish and wildlife resources will require a consistent and technically based assessment protocol implemented on a watershed basis. This project is the first step in development of the protocol for cumulative impact assessment.

The first step in the process was to review extant literature on cumulative impact assessment in wetlands and to review methods developed for this purpose. These reviews are an …

Jurisdictional Environmental Coordination, Gloucester County, Virginia, Pamela Mason, Carl Hershner

Reports

The ability to coordinate the management of human activities in the landscape from an environmental perspective has been a desired, yet elusive, interest. The ability to accurately value environmental functions economically has confounded this process; but conflicts are not confined to the obvious ones between economics and the environment. Even those activities within the field of environmental management are not always harmonious. A myriad of management activities administered at various levels of government results in a web of responsibilities lacking in any central coordination. Varied local, state, and federal programs administered by different agencies have missions that put them in …

Marina Site Suitablity Tool : Final Project Report, Marcia Berman, Kirk J. Havens, Tamia Rudnicky, Thomas A. Barnard

Reports

In coordination with the Department of Conservation and Recreation, the Department of Environmental Quality, the Chesapeake Bay Local Assistance Department and the Virginia Marine Resources Commission (VMRC), the Center for Coastal Resources Management at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science (VIMS) was contracted to develop a tool for local governments that would assist in the decision-making process for marina development. In particular, the agencies wanted to develop a visual representation of the VMRC Criteria for the Siting of Marinas or Community Facilities for Boat Mooring. This was accomplished by gathering available data sets and developing geographic information system (GIS) data …

Virginia’S Coastal Program: Strategic Mapping Of Management Goals, Jennifer Newton, Pamela Mason, Carl Hershner

Reports

Virginia’s Coastal Resources Management Program is a networked program bringing together the activities of many state agencies and institutions to achieve the overarching mission of coastal zone management. The Program’s objectives were originally set out in a series of 25 goals in the 1986 Executive Order (see Appendix B) that established the Program for the Commonwealth under the federal Coastal Zone Management Act. Beginning in May of 1999, representatives of the Virginia state agencies involved with the networked Coastal Program attended a series of meetings to develop logic maps of these twenty-five goals. This document represents the final results of …

Answering Local Wetlands Boards Needs Regarding Guidance In Investigating Wetlands Violations : Final Report To The United States Environmental Protection Agency, Wetlands Protection State Development Project Period July 1, 1998-June 30, 2000, Kirk J. Havens, Bartlett N. Theberge

Reports

No abstract provided.

Increasing The Probability Of Success In Restored Forested Wetlands, Kirk J. Havens, Gene Silberhorn

Reports

This study investigated survival and growth of two distinct ecotypic populations, with varying tolerance to waterlogging, of four species, Taxodium distichum (L.) Richard, Carpinus caroliniana Walt., Quercus michauxii Nutt. and Quercus pagoda Raf. (Syn. Q.falcata var. pagodifolia Ell.).

Critical Elements In The Application Of Water Quality Standards To Wetlands : Classification System, Beneficial Use Designation And The Identification Of Exceptional Wetlands, Pamela A. Mason, Carl H. Hershner, Virginia Institute Of Marine Science. Department Of Resource Management And Policy, Wetlands Program

Reports

No abstract provided.